


School Blues

by thoseperfectcurls



Category: One Direction (Band)
Genre: Kid!Harry, Niam - Freeform, Niam Fluff, kid!direction, kid!louis, larry - Freeform
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2014-01-28
Updated: 2017-10-25
Packaged: 2018-01-10 10:06:32
Rating: Not Rated
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 5
Words: 9,079
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/1158342
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/thoseperfectcurls/pseuds/thoseperfectcurls
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>This is a prompt from tumblr. Pretty much... Liam is Harry's dad and he has a crush on his sons school teacher; Niall. Niall has a older son, Zayn, and this is a shit summary i'm sorry.</p>
            </blockquote>





	1. First Day

Liam sighed as he pulled up to the curb of Sunnyside Primary School. He knew that this wouldn’t be an easy task, his son Harry has always been a very shy and reserved young boy, but Liam really didn’t have a choice. He couldn’t let the four and a half year old wait another year to start kindergarten, he didn’t have the time to watch him and his past babysitter had gotten a new job. 

So here the two were, Liam dressed in jeans and a t-shirt with the local firefighter station symbol on it and Harry was dressed in his best navy blue polo shirt and dark wash jeans. The little boy’s green eyes were glossy and his lower lip quivered; a sure sign that tears were close. Liam turned his upper body around and frowned at the sight in front of him. He hated it when anybody was sad and his unhappiness increased 10 fold when that somebody was his own kid. 

“Come on buddy, school will be fun!” Liam was desperate at this point. Harry had spent an hour yesterday cuddled up in his arms through heart wrenching sobs and hiccups he begged his daddy not to make him go to school. Liam was so close to calling in sick to the station but he couldn’t, he knew he couldn’t just up and quit his job just because his son didn’t want to go to school, he had to go eventually.

“Harry,” Liam sighed and got out of the driver’s seat and walked around the car to his son’s side and opened the door. He crouched down so he was eye level with the small boy in a booster seat who just looked at his father and sniffled. “Baby, I will walk you in, yeah?” Liam smiled hoping that it would lighten the mood but his plan didn’t work seeing as this started a whole new round of tears and this is something Liam just can’t handle.  
The young father couldn’t do anything else, he felt horrible but he was no doubt going to be late if he didn’t drop Harry off now, right now. Having no other choice, he started to unstrap Harry from his seat and slowly he pulled him out of the car and into his arms. Harry was never a loud crier, he never liked to cause a scene, so he shoved his face into his father’s shoulders as Liam crouched down to grab his blue rainbow-dash my little pony backpack that had his matching lunchbox and his favorite stuffed animal ‘bunny’ which was ironically a stuffed kitten.

Liam something warm and wet on his neck and he knew it was his son’s tears. He took a deep breath and counted to ten, he knew his son had some form of anxiety issues or separation problems. He didn’t really realize how bad it was until now though. He could practically feel his heart breaking as he made his way towards the small brick primary school building and to the classroom the two visited last week. Sadly, his teacher couldn’t make it to the ‘meet the teacher’s day’ which was weird to Liam, but he didn’t say anything.

As he approached the door that had ‘Mr. Horan – Kindergarten’ in bright red bubble letters he let out a sigh because he knew this wasn’t going to be a walk in the park.

“Harry,” he said lightly and he stopped walking when he stood in front of the door and knocked twice before looking down at the little boy in his arms. “Baby, you have to go with your teacher Mr. Horan. I know you don’t want too but I need to go to work and put out all the fires, yeah?”

The four year old sniffled and looked up with teary eyes, but said nothing. Before Liam could say anything else, the door swung open and revealed probably the most ruggedly handsome man Liam had ever had the pleasure of meeting. The man, who had to be Mr. Horan, had brown hair with blonde tips and he had some smooth pale skin and big black glasses that were covering his beautiful blue eyes. Liam shook his head quickly because he couldn’t be having these feelings about his four year olds school teacher.

Liam was snapped out of his daydream when he heard Harry let out a quiet whimper and burry his face back into his neck.

“Late? On the first day too.” The beautiful looking man laughed lightly before his smile dropped at the sight of Harry. “Oh hey buddy, I’m guessing your Harry since you were the only one left on my list, am I right?”

Harry didn’t move or make a move to reply to his new teacher and Liam sighed sadly. “I’m so sorry Mr. Horan, he is terrified and so nervous, he’s only just turned four a few months ago but it was either send him early or send him late next year when he is five and a half so…”

“No problem, I’ll keep an eye out for my newest little helper, will you do me the honor Harry of coming into the classroom and hanging out with me? I promise we will have a blast and you can even draw a picture for your daddy!”

Harry let out another whimper and clung tighter onto his father who tried to set him down. The legs around his waist tighten and Harry let out another sob and neither the young teacher nor Liam knew what to do.

“Hazza,” Liam sighed and pulled his son away from where he was nesting on his chest “Baby, you really can’t do this sweetie, I’ll be here to pick you up at 2:15, alright?”

Harry lets out another sob but nods his head slowly because turning his attention to Mr. Horan. “Can you say ‘hello’ to your new teacher?” Liam asked, happy that his son had somewhat accepted that he was going to school. Instead of responding, Harry looked down and stuck his thumb in his mouth.

Liam set him down on his own two feet and put his, slightly girly (but Liam knew that Harry was never one to go along with gender roles) backpack straps on his shoulders, then gave him a quick kiss on top of his curly hair.

Niall, or Mr. Horan, turned his body around and called out for Louis. Harry hid behind his father’s leg once he saw a taller, bigger, smiling boy with the bluest eyes the four year has ever seen. He instantly took a liking to him but was still too shy to move away from his hiding spot.

“Louis, this is Harry and he is a bit shy,” Mr. Horan crouched down so he was eye level with both boys. Harry had slowly started to peek at the two from behind jean clad legs and he smiled a little when the other boy, Louis, waved at him enthusiastically. “Will you be his buddy? Show him the ropes in the classroom and be his first friend here?”

Louis frantically began nodding his head and laughed loudly while taking Harry’s hand and dragging him into the classroom. Liam half expected Harry to begin crying or come running back to him, but to his complete and utter surprise, the little boy let himself be dragged and actually smiled when the older boy sat him down in a seat next to him and the two began coloring like the other twenty something kids in the classroom.

“Wow,” Liam said and he honestly has never been more surprised “That went so much better than I was expecting.”

Mr. Horan laughed out loud and stuck his hand out so that he could give the young father a proper greeting “Niall, Niall Horan.”

Liam smiled because, Niall Horan was a beautiful name and suited this man perfectly. “Liam, Liam Payne, and that over there is my son Harry Payne.”

“Well Mr. Payne, your son is in good hands if I must say so myself, and although it was a pleasure meeting you, I’m sure you have somewhere to be, yeah”

That’s when Liam realized he was over 10 minutes late at the station and shit, this was not good, at all.

“Yeah shit, oh sorry I just-” Liam was caught off by a warm laugh and a shake of the head “It’s no problem really, just go to work and he will be fine here.”

Liam nodded and peeked into the classroom to look at his son and wave one last time to him before the child could change his mind and begin crying again, Liam would probably crack and let him stay home if he did that. He really was a big softie despite what many others think, they think he is a stern father because the boy eats vegetable and fruits more than he eats sweets and candy.

So Liam left, he went to work and thought about how his son was doing, he also couldn’t get those bright blue eyes and blonde hair out of his mind. Niall Horan, such a wonderful name. This wasn’t going to be such a bad school year, especially if Liam got to see his son’s beautiful teacher again and of course if Harry was having fun. Liam had to remind himself that Niall was Harry’s teacher.


	2. Forgotten

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Liam is late. Harry is sad. but hey, Zayn is here to make it all better (and play matchmaker)

It was nearly 3:00 and Niall was starting to get nervous. The younger kids were let out at 2:15, but there was till one small curly haired four year old left; Harry Payne. 

It’s been two weeks since the small boy started school, and he is usually one of the last kids to leave but never this late. Liam was usually punctual, well as punctual as his demanding job let him be, but he has only ever been 10-15 minutes late on a bad day. Today it’s been nearly 45 minutes and still no sign of Liam, and Niall knew that within the next five minutes his own son would walk through the door and expect to head home; it was Friday and in the Horan household that meant Nandos and Game night.

Niall chewed his nails as he dialed the number left on Harrys emergency contact list for the fourth time. He casted a glance at little Harry and immediately regretted it when he saw the boy was sitting in his chair with his knees pulled to his chest, tears running down his bright red face, while holding his stuffed kitten close to him. The four year old knows that his daddy is really late picking him up from school. His little irrational four year old mind is screaming that ‘Your own daddy doesn’t love you’ and ‘he left you here on purpose, he doesn’t love you’.

Harry started sobbing once again and Niall couldn’t do this. He barely knew Liam and Harry but he knew that they had a close relationship and this was probably killing Harry on the inside. Before the young teacher could go over to the four year old and try to comfort him, Zayn Horan walked into the room. His red backpack thrown over his shoulders and the leather jacket the thirteen year old just had to have was hung over his skinny shoulders. His eyebrows furrowed when he saw his dad wasn’t alone like he normally was when he got out of school.

“Hey dad…” Zayn slowly put down his backpack, not taking his eyes off the boy who hasn’t stop sobbing “Who’s the little one?”  
Niall sighed and was about to respond when his phone started ringing and the caller I.D. was the number he recognized as the number he has been trying to call for the past half an hour.

“Zayn, watch Harry for a minute okay bub?”

Niall walked out of the classroom without a response from the pre-teen. Zayn sucked in a deep breathe when he saw the young boy had stopped crying but was still hiccupping and coughing into the old stuffed kitten in his arms. Zayn walked over to the little boy and slowly took a seat in one of the tiny chairs made for very small children. “Hey Harry, My name is Zayn.”

Harry, Zayn assumed that was his name because that is what his father called him, looked up and let out a whimper which actually broke Zayn’s heart.  
“C’mon buddy, do you wanna color a picture?” Zayn asked sweetly, his usually ‘too cool for anything’ aura completely shattered as he cooed at the little boy who slowly reached out for the packet of crayons sitting in the center of the table.

As Zayn started to open the pack of crayons, Harry let out another sad sounding sob and slowly crawled into the pre-teens lap. Neither Zayn nor Harry knew why the four year old decided to trust him so easily, to crawl up into a complete strangers lap but Zayn only smiled and pulled out a piece of paper from the stack sitting in the middle of the table. For five minutes Harry just watched the older boy draw on the paper. He drew a kitty which made Harry actually crack a smile and pull bunny closer to his chest. He didn’t know why, but Mr. Horan’s kid made Harry feel safe. Kind of like how a younger sibling would feel about their older brother/sister. For a moment Harry forgot that his father wasn’t here to pick him up, he forgot about how he was left at school. All he could think about was the picture Zayn was drawing in front of him. Eventually his exhaustion caught up to the small boy and he slowly let his head fall onto Zayn’s chest and he fell asleep; little thumb in his mouth and body turned into the older boys chest.

When Niall returned to the classroom, his eyebrows were furrowed but he quickly started to grin when he saw his son cuddling close with one of, Niall had to admit, probably the cutest kid he has ever had the pleasure of teaching.

The moody teenager rolled his eyes at the sight of his father’s smirk and he just cuddled Harry closer and tried his hardest to ignore his now laughing father.

“Dad, be quiet you’re going to wake him up.” Zayn hissed, as he looked down at the kid who hadn’t even flinched at the booming laugh coming from Niall.

“Oh don’t worry about that bud,” Niall smiled as he pulled out his IPhone and opened the camera app “Harry could probably sleep through a bomb, always have to wake him up at naptime.”

Zayn nodded slowly and pulled his lip between his teeth. He really wanted to know why the little boy was still here, he knew that the younger kids got out forty five minutes before him. “Uh, dad?” Zayn knew he shouldn’t have any reason to be nervous. Niall was a cool father and would probably tell him what he wanted to know without missing a beat. “Why is Harry still here? Like I know he’s a cute kid and all but-“

Niall cut Zayn’s rambling off with another loud laugh accompanied by a fond smile. “No worries Zayn, his father is a firefighter and there was a small house fire downtown somewhere. He couldn’t get off and it just slipped his mind to call and tell me. He’s a good guy, don’t worry ‘bout it.” Niall smiled when he saw Zayn nod slowly and look down at the boy in his skinny arms.

Ever sense Zayn turned thirteen; he had it set in his mind that he was an ‘adult’ now. He had said time and time again that he was no longer a kid. He told Niall he didn’t want to cuddle while watching movies because that ‘isn’t what men do.’

Niall, the affectionate guy he is, was a little put off by this sudden mood change at first. After a while though he accepted that his baby is going through his terrible teenage faze. Every kid, especially boys, have them. There was nothing Niall needed to worry about. However, even though Niall has come to accept the sudden change in attitude from his son, that doesn’t mean it doesn’t warm his heart to see him be openly affectionate with a little boy and be open to cuddle Harry when he was obviously upset.

While Niall was thinking, he almost didn’t notice the door to the classroom swing open revealing a sweaty, out of breathe Liam.

“Oh my god, I’m so sorry.” Liam ran right over to Zayn and carefully pulled Harry into his own arms “Is he alright? Was he crying? Oh shit his eyes look puffy and his face is red, he was crying. I am so very sorry Niall-”Liam was a rambling mess of words and Niall cut him off with a nonchalant hand wave.

Liam opened his mouth to say something else, probably another apology, but Harry was suddenly wide awake. A high pitched squeal along with a loud “DADDY!” was heard from the four year old and then Liam was being hugged by skinny arms tightly around his neck.

“Harry, baby, daddy is so sorry sweetheart. I am so very sorry baby.” Liam was nearly in tears. He knew how scared his son gets when Liam isn’t on time, he knows that Harry is sensitive and gets anxious. Liam also knew that he really needed to take Harry to somebody, to get him to talk about his feelings towards being ‘left’. Whenever Liam leaves, even if only for work, Harry gets upset. It was some form of anxiety, that part was obvious, but Liam knew this. He should have called his mother or Ruth. As soon as he arrived at the fire he should have called somebody but no. He didn’t, and his precious baby had to pay for his stupid actions.

Niall watched on with a small smile as he looked at the little family in front of him. Those two made such a wonderful family, no doubt about it. His smiled widened as Zayn came to stand up next to him carrying Harry’s backpack and lunchbox.

“Oh, thank you- I’m sorry I actually don’t know your name.” Liam let out a little laugh as he held onto Harry with one arm and grabbed the backpack and lunch box with the other.

Zayn opened his mouth to introduce himself but before he could, Harry practically threw himself out of his father’s arms, and right into Zayn’s. “Zaynie!” Harry yelled, all the tears and fears long forgotten, as if ten minutes ago when he was bawling never even happened. He had a large grin on his face and dimples on display on his chubby little cheeks.

“Well, Zaynie, it seems that Harry here likes you.” Liam put on a smile but on the inside he was terribly confused. Harry was painfully shy. He still isn’t completely comfortable around his sister Ruth’s fiancé, who he has known all his life. “Nice to meet you, uh- my name is Liam by the way, Liam Payne.”

Zayn smiled and awkwardly shifted Harry’s small body onto his hip as he stretched out his arm “You can call me Zayn, it’s nice to meet you Mr. Payne.”

Liam smiled and it was then that Zayn noticed his father out of the corner of his eyes; the smile on his face accompanied by the faint blush on his cheeks.

Out of nowhere Zayn had a brilliant idea, one that will benefit both him and his father. “Mr. Payne, since it is Friday, usually my dad and I go to Nandos for dinner, would you like to join us?” Zayn smiled sweetly at the man before him who looked like he was leaning towards saying yes.

“Well, Harry, what do you say buddy.” Liam asked as he reached back out for his son who willingly let his father take him out of his new friend’s arms. “Would you like to go to dinner with Mr. Horan and Zayn?”

Harry stuck his thumb in his mouth and made eye contact with Zayn one more time before smiling and nodding his head quickly.

Liam looked at Niall for confirmation on the plans, he was after all Zayn’s father and he didn’t want to be barging in on quality family time. Niall only let out a laugh before throwing his arms in the air “Brilliant! The more the merrier, eh?”

And that is only just the beginning.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> follow thoseperfectcurls and fucknzayn on tumblr! xx


	3. Dino Chicken

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Zayn ships his father; Niall with Liam. Harry also has Zayn wrapped around his little finger after only a day. how cute.

Liam was beaming as he pulled his car into the Nando’s parking lot; Harry had been talking about his new friend, Zayn, ever since they got into the car. Liam couldn’t remember a time where Harry has been this happy.

“Daddy,” Harry asked through a fit of giggles from his seat in the back while Liam put the car in park “May I please get dino chicken daddy.”

“Of course baby,” Liam honestly thought this was the best day of his life, not only was his son ecstatic, but he got to spend a little more time with one of the best looking people Liam has seen in a long time. “Maybe we can ever get some ice cream tonight, yeah?”

Harry was smiling, and Liam didn’t think it was possible but when a white small car pulled up in the spot next to them and a familiar tan looking boy stepped out, Harry’s smile got even bigger.

“Daddy, look there’s Zayn!” Harry was hopping in his booster seat, frantically trying to unbuckle his seat belt and Liam tried not to laugh at the boy. “Okay buddy, hold on a second.”

Liam stepped out of the car and greeted Zayn who was smiling and waving to Harry through the window who was waving back enthusiastically.

“So Zayn,” Liam said looking from Harry to the pre-teen “Harry really does seem to like you, and after only one day too.” Liam smiled at the bashful looking boy in front of him and opened the car door to help Harry out of his seat.

“Hi Zayn…” Harry said shyly as Liam helped him step out of the car. The younger boy brought his stuffed kitten up close to his chest as he looked up at Zayn with wide eyes. The older boy just chuckled and ran a hand through Harry’s curls. “Hey buddy, let’s go inside its cold out here.” Zayn held out his hand, which Harry took easily and the two started walking towards the entrance to the restaurant.

Meanwhile, Niall who was in the car talking to somebody on the phone previously, had just finished up his call and was apologizing to Liam for being ‘rude’. The two made their way to catch up with the younger boys and Liam assured him that he was fine and that he wasn’t being rude for talking on the phone.

“Honestly Niall,” Liam said as he held open the door for the blonde, missing the way Zayn was smirking t the two of them from where he was teaching Harry how to play ‘Flappy Bird’ on his phone. The Nando’s was one that the Horan’s were very familiar with. The walls were painted red and they had a lot of sports related decorations hung up on the walls, the setting of the place was very laid back and easy going. Liam, who is familiar with Nando’s, has never been to this particular one so Niall made sure that they would get the “full experience.”

Not even ten minutes later, two of the four of them were sitting in a booth towards the back on the restaurant. They were near the kitchen so that they could see every time a waiter walked out with somebodies food, but they were also right next to the game area where Zayn took Harry to play while their food was cooking. This left Liam and Niall alone to talk, which Zayn looked very smug about.

“So Liam,” Niall said, awkwardly folding his hands together and looking down as his lap. “How was that fire today…” Niall’s pale face was bright red with embarrassment. Of all things to say to an attractive male, he asks about a fire.

To Niall’s complete and utter surprise, Liam let out a loud laugh which caught the attention of Harry, who was attempting to learn how to play pool with Zayn. Once Harry saw that his father was smiling and laughing and overall just plain happy, the little boy let out a squeak and turned around to face his new ‘best friend’.

“Zaynee,” Harry tilted his head to the side and his eyebrows were furrowed as he looked up at the older boy “Is your daddy and my daddy gonna get married?”

Zayn kneeled down so he was at Harry’s level and smiled, “well buddy I don’t know about that, but I think they’re gonna be a lot closer after tonight.”

“Do you think they will let us play tomorrow? We can build a sand castle at the park!” Harry’s eyes were wide and his smile was so wide Zayn felt like it was any second before he just drove to the park right now and built the world’s biggest sand castle for the younger boy.

“I’m sure they’d love that Harry, I know I would.” Zayn smiled as Harry let out a cheer. He knew from his brief conversation in the car from his dad that Harry only had one friend at school, a young boy named Louis. He was shy and whenever Louis opted to play football with the other boys during their outside time, Harry would sit and play alone. Niall had told him that he was very shy and quiet and that he was honestly shocked when Harry latched onto Zayn like they had known each other their whole life.

Zayn’s heart was so sad when he heard that, he knew what it felt like to feel like an outcast and to feel like you didn’t belong with any of your peers. He was determined to make Harry feel comfortable around him, and so far he feels like he has succeeded. Honestly, Zayn had warmed up to Harry just as easily as Harry had to Zayn, if not more.

“Zayn, Harry our food is here.” Zayn looked up from where he was still kneeling in front of Harry and looked over at their table and saw that Niall and Liam were sitting in front of a table of food.

“Coming dad,” Zayn called out before looking back down at Harry. “Hey buddy, why don’t we ask our daddies to have a picnic tomorrow at the park during lunch, it is supposed to be a really pretty day and since its Saturday neither of us have school. How does that sound?”

Harry let out a very happy sound before nodding his head excitedly and running back the booth where he crawled back in his seat next to Liam. Zayn was a few steps behind him and took his seat across from Harry, next to his father.

“Daddy!” Harry was beaming, his smile never really faded ever since they stepped foot into the restaurant, “Look Daddy, I have the dino chicken!”

“Oh yeah?” Liam took a bite of his own pub burger before letting out a pleased noise “Niall you were right. This is the best burger I have ever tasted.”

“I always am right, isn’t that right Zayn?” Niall reached over and pinched his son’s cheek while he was chewing on his chicken wrap and the teenager swatted his father’s hand away. “Come on now dad, it really isn’t nice to lie.”

Liam let out another laugh that had Harry laughing too, although everyone was pretty sure he had no idea what was going on. This was a good moment; Zayn sat back in his seat and looked around him. Part of him felt like this was going way too fast, he had only met these two people today but he felt like he had known them his whole life. He felt like there was a piece of his family missing that he didn’t even know about until today.

“Zaynee,” Harry spoke up and all the attention was on the four year old “Look I have a dino chicken.” Harry held up a little piece of chicken that was cut into the shape of a dinosaur.

“Whoa Haz, that’s so cool!” Zayn was leaning over the table and pretending to look that the chicken more intently, he was playing along with Harry but what he didn’t know was that his dad was staring at him with eyes full of amazement… and surprise.

Yeah, this may be going really fast, but it felt right.

By the end of the night, the family of four had spent a good three and a half hours sitting in their booth in the Nando’s just socializing. They had ordered deserts shortly after their meals and Harry passed out and was now sleeping on top of his father while Niall and Liam both tried to make excused to not leave. Zayn was leaning back, scrolling on his phone; he pretty much dropped out of their conversation once Harry fell asleep about 30 minutes previous.

“I really need to get him to sleep,” Liam looked down at the sleeping boy and smiled, he was such a precious kid.

“Yeah, he is so beat,” Niall smiled at the boy laying on top of Liam, head rolled back on his father’s shoulder before looking at his son was had by now, tuned out the entire conversation. “I ‘member when Zayn was that young” Niall said as he nodded his head in Harry’s direction, “Although it really doesn’t seem like that long ago.”

Eventually, Liam stood up with Harry in his arms and Niall pulled the headphones of of Zayn’s ears so that he could say goodbye.

They walked out to the car in silence, nobody knowing how to really end the conversation, or say goodbye. However, it didn’t really seem like anybody would have to make that decision because Zayn had given Liam, and Harry since he was still in his arms, a hug goodbye before mentioning a picnic at the park tomorrow.

“Yeah, You can just give my dad a call tomorrow and you guys can work out the details, yeah?” Zayn didn’t even wait for an answer before he walked over to Niall’s car and got into the passenger seat.

“Is that okay with you?” Liam asked Niall, who seemed to be kicking at the ground like he was embarrassed.

Niall’s head shot up and he smiled nervously “Yeah mate, I’d love too honestly,” Niall looked at the boy who let out a whimper in his sleep, little hands clutching onto his dad’s shirt tighter.

“You really should get him home though mate,” Niall said and he got his keys out from his back pocket “I have your number already, from school and such, err- I’ll give you a call tomorrow? We can talk about the whole park thing?”

“Yeah sure,” Liam stuttered over his words and blushed because he knew he was being a idiot, a idiot with a crush “Harry would love that, I already know that so yeah, give me a call? Harry has me up every morning at 7 am anyways, so anytime will work.”

After a awkward hug that Liam had given Niall in the heat of the moment, a hug that had Zayn laughing in the car and Niall was left biting his lip back to hide his smile, to two men were on their separate ways.

But this is not the end of their story, no, this is only the beginning.


	4. Picnic in the Park

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> This chapter is exactly what it says... it is also 100% unedited so pardon any mistakes!

Harry woke up the next morning at seven am. He rubbed the sleep out of his eyes and let out a big yawn. He looked around his room and smiled, he loved everything about his room. The walls were painted a light yellow and his bedspread was blue. Although he had hard wood floors, which he hated because they made his feet super cold so he always has to wear socks in the morning, there was also a carpet with a city on it so he could play with his toy cars on it. The small boy had a lot of toys but luckily Liam had raised him not to ever brag about what he had and to always share with other children.

Harry stepped sleepily out of bed and grabbed his old stuffed kitten from his bead for slowly making his way to his daddy’s room; like he does every morning. The four year olds socked feet were dragging quietly on the ground and Harry smiled and hugged his kitten tighter as he made his way to Liam’s door.  
“Daddy,” Harry pushed open the door with one hand and stepped inside the dark room, the only light source was the small amount of light coming from the window. “Daddy?” Harry repeated himself a little louder this time, not too loud though just in case Liam was not in the mood for morning cuddles, which never happened.

Liam slowly turned over in his bed and squinted open his eyes to look down at his son, who was still standing hesitantly by the door. “Good morning bub,” Liam smiled and Harry practically ran and jumped onto his bed, the ‘good morning’ being the sign that says his daddy is awake and ready to cuddle.

“How was your sleep Haz?” Liam asked, pulling his son to his chest and laying back down onto the bed with a smile sketched onto his face. 

“It was good daddy, I don’t ‘member what I dreamed about though.” Harry pouted and looked at his father like it was the worst thing that could have ever happened.

“That’s okay love, I don’t remember half of my dreams.” Liam smiled and closed his eyes, trying to get a little more rest before he got out of bed and made breakfast for he and Harry. “I’m sure it was a good dream though.”

“Yeah I think it was a good dream, or else I would have come and cuddled with you, right daddy?” Harry sat up so that he was on top of Liam sitting up on his chest while Liam threw an arm over his eyes and smiled.

“You can always come to me for a cuddle if you have a bad dream baby, you know that.”

“I know daddy,” Harry places his little hands on Liams chest and smiled as his father pulled his arm away and smiled at Harry “Can I pway with Zaynee today daddy, pwease?” Harry stuck out his bottom lip and Liam groaned because there was no way he could say no to that face, Harry was too cute for his own good.

“Let’s have some breakfast and then we can watch a movie,” Liam rolled his eyes when Harry visibly deflated after his father’s answer “Then after, if you’re feeling up to it, we can meet up with Zayn and Niall for a picnic in the park for lunch.”

Harry jumped off of Liam so fast that the father was worried he fell off, however he laughed when he felt little hands grabbing at his wrist and pulling in an attempt to pry Liam out of bed.

“Come on Daddy!” Once Harry was off of the bed he began running for the stairs, grabbing one of the banisters with his little hand and slowly walking down taking one step at a time. Liam was right behind him, chucking at his son who was humming the alphabet song and he walked down the stairs at an extremely slow pace.

Once the two were in the kitchen Liam picked up Harry and sat him down on the counter. The little boy laughed and started kicking his legs against the cabinets.

“What would you like for breakfast sweetheart?” Liam asked as he started a pot of coffee and got a mug and a plastic cup from the drawer above Harry. Harry pretending to be thinking hard, tapping his fingers against his chin like he has seen his father do plenty of times before “I want oatmeal Daddy!”

“Oatmeal it is!” Liam got out everything needed and started boiling water for the oatmeal. “Would you like apples in the oatmeal babes?” Liam asked while getting out a cutting board and knife, prepared to cut some fruit for his son, who was very good about eating all his fruits and vegetables. “Not any apples today daddy, I think I want some strawberries, may I please have strawberries daddy?” Harry smiled at Liam who looked at his son like he was the sun, really sometimes Liam doesn’t know how he got so lucky.

Liam nodded and went to the fridge to pull out the strawberries, he listened to Harry talk about his favorite TV show, ‘Phineas and Ferb’. Once he was done preparing two bowls of oatmeal with strawberries Liam set Harry up by the TV while he called his father and caught up with him.

By the time Liam’s phone called ended it was only 9 o’clock and he had a good two hours before he would call Niall and ask if he wanted to meet at the park at noon for lunch.

It was nearly 11 when Niall rolled out of bed to the sound of his phone ringing. The young blonde stretched and walked over to his bag where he had left it after last night, completely forgetting to charge it but the iPhone still had about 13% left, just enough for a phone call. Niall’s eyes widened when his caller ID had showed Liam flashing up on the screen, he cleared his throat and answered the phone, trying hard to sound like he didn’t waste half of the day sleeping.

“Hello?” Niall tried hard to play it cool but nearly groaned when his voice cracked halfway through his greeting.

“Hey Niall, its Liam, is this a bad time?” Liam sounded like he was stressing out and Niall could hear the sound of cartoons on the television and the distant noise of Harry laughing in the background. It brought a smile to Niall’s face as he made his way out of his room and to the kitchen where he would brew a pot of coffee.

“No it’s not a bad time Liam, what I can do for you.” Niall was grinning, he was falling hard for the older man he just didn’t know it yet.

“Well, there was talk about a picnic in the park for lunch today and Harry here has been talking about it all morning,” Liam stopped talking when a loud laugh pierced through the air, after a few seconds he continued “I was just wondering if you and Zayn were up for it.”

“Of course Liam! Zayn and I would love to join you and Harry, let’s say noon at the park off of Pierces Road? Down by the school?”

“Sounds great Niall, I’ll see you then, and don’t worry about bringing any food, Harry and I will make sandwiches’ and snacks.”

“Sounds great Liam.” Niall smiled and said his goodbyes before hanging up and taking a gulp of his coffee. He turned to the stove and looked at the clock realizing it was 11:15 and the park was 15 minutes away, giving him 30 minutes to get ready and ‘oh god’ he thought to himself, he still has to wake Zayn up.

50 minutes later Niall and Zayn were parking the car right outside the playground and smiled when they caught sight of Liam and Harry setting out a little blanket by the tree. Well, more like Liam setting out a blanket and Harry was running around his legs probably making things 10 times harder for Liam.

“I remember when you were that young Zaynie.” Niall said as the two got out and locked the car by his key ring. The two made their way up to the small family and Niall beamed when Harry stopped pesking around Liam and bolted straight for Zayn screaming at the top of his lungs ‘Zaynee!’

“Hello Niall and Zayn, I hope you both like turkey sandwiches with a healthy side of grapes and carrots.” Liam was smiling as he sat himself down on the blanket and began pulling out bags of fruits and vegetables.

Zayn looked back at his father, half expecting him to fake gag at the thought of having to eat something that wasn’t high in cholesterol or sugar but surprisingly he sat down right next to Liam and popped a grape in his mouth before smiling wide at the older man.

Zayn picked up Harry and walked them over to their fathers. He sat down and placed Harry in his lap much to the younger boys delight. The four of them began talking and Niall was surprised about how much Harry was speaking, at school he only ever talked to Louis or him whenever he needed to use the restroom, but this was like a whole new person. In a god way of course, it seemed like Harry was coming out of his shell and seeing the look on Liam’s face, he knew that he was thinking the same exact thing.

Their nice lunch was almost over when it all went to shit. A group of teenage boys were playing football fairly close by to the family and right as Harry and Zayn were walking back from the swings the boys began throwing obscene gestures and words and the two men who were seemingly romantically involved judging upon the situation. Liam was trying hard to ignore them, knowing that they were all 15 and 16 year old boys who felt some sick sort of pleasure from breaking people down. He tried to ignore them he really did, but when Harry innocently asked what a ‘faggot’ was he had enough. He stood up and walked over to the group of boys who all immediately shut up after seeing Liam walk over. His broad body structure and language was a little intimidating and obviously not what the boys were expecting.

“Is there a problem over here boys?” Liam asked, crossing his arms over his chest and giving them a stern look. The boys lasted about 10 seconds before the all ran away, terrified of the older and much bigger man that approached them.

Liam took a deep breath before turning around and seeing Niall and Zayn looking at him with amazed faces and Harry was looking back and forth between those two and Liam. He was obviously confused and reached his arms out to his father to be held.

“Sorry about that bub.” Liam picked Harry up and kissed his forehead before sitting back down on the blanket, not making eye contact with Zayn or Niall. It was silent for a few moments before Zayn spoke up “That was amazing Liam, you just walked over there and they ran away like cowards.”

Zayn lightened the mood a little bit when Liam chuckled and Niall cracked a smile “that was pretty brave Liam”

“That was honestly nothing, I don’t stand for bullying of any sort.” Liam smoothed the curls from Harrys head as the little boy rested his head on his father’s chest, eyes closing and opening every few seconds and his little thumb in his mouth.

“I better get him home, he gets a bit cranky when he doesn’t take a nap.” Liam slowly sat up and was very grateful for Niall and Zayn who quickly picked up the lunch bag and blanket for him.

“Another time then Liam?” Niall asked as he walked Liam and a now sleeping Harry to their car while Zayn went to unlock their car.

“Yeah until next time Niall,” Liam buckled Harry into the car seat before turning around and facing Niall “Maybe next time it can be just the two of us yeah?”

Niall didn’t get a chance to answer before Liam kissed his cheek and hopped in his driver’s seat, reversing out of the parking lot and heading home. Niall stood there with a hand to his face where his skin burning from the touch of Liam’s lips and a warm heart. Zayn smiled from his spot in the passengers seat where he witnessed the whole scene.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> SORRY THIS TOOK SO LONG GUYS!! I am thinking of making this a total of 10 chapters bu I want there to be more of a plot then there is now, so if anyone has any ideas please feel free to message me at thoseperfectcurls.tumblr.com !!! ALSO please leave kudos, comments, whatever you want if you liked this chapter!!! Without your encouragement I would have NO reason to write!


	5. Curly Locks

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Okay guys, it’s been a hot second, but I am back (for right now at least). I stopped writing this story 3 years ago, and I am really sorry about that for anyone who actually liked it. However, the good news is I have somewhat improved as a writer (hopefully).  
> I started writing this story because it was cute, and it was something I wanted to read. I stopped writing because I thought I was a terrible writer and lost all inspiration for everything. I am picking this back up because I hate not finishing things I started. I can’t promise it will be super long, but I do intend on creating some sort of ending to this story.  
> For all of those leaving comments and kudos on this story three years after it being last updated, bless you. I would get emails and every time I would sit back and be so surprised. So, thank you for that. Without further ado, the update you may or may not have wanted or been waiting for.

It’s been two weeks since Liam and Harry met up with Zayn and Niall for the picnic. It’s also been two weeks since Liam worked up the courage to kiss Niall on the cheek. Two whole weeks, and yet nobody made a move to initiate any further dates.  


It’s Friday afternoon on a chilly October day, and Liam was on his way to pick up Harry from school. Having thoughts about your son’s teacher was probably looked down upon, yet Liam couldn’t get those blue eyes out of his head.  


It’s been years since Liam felt any sort of romantic or sexual feelings towards another human being. Yeah, he wanked off to some porn when he had the downtime and could be certain that his son couldn’t walk in on him, but that doesn’t really count. The point is, ever since Harry’s mother left, he hasn’t felt any strong feelings to anyone. Liam has had two weeks to ponder this sudden infatuation, and he thinks most of his feelings derive from how good Niall is at caring for his son. Every day, Harry would come up with pictures and stories about how funny and nice his teacher was. Last Monday Harry even claimed to have tried playing football with Louis because of some encouraging words given by Niall.  


All in all, Liam thinks Niall is pretty damn great. He was also hot, which was an added bonus.  


As Liam pulled into a parking spot close to the front doors, he gave himself a quick pep talk. Today was the day he was going to man up and ask Niall out properly.  


After a few moments, Liam got out of the car and headed inside, losing a little bit of confidence with each step closer he got to the classroom.  
As he approached the nearly empty classroom, only a few kids that haven’t been picked up yet, he saw Niall was sitting at the desk with a crying Harry. All the color dropped from his face as Liam jogged the last few steps to get to Harry, immediately concerned with his son’s well-being.  


“Harry, baby, what’s wrong?” Liam pulled his son into his arms as he let out a heart wrenching sob.  


“Daddy,” the four-year-old cried out, “I wanna go home”.  


Liam looked at Niall, hoping to get a more coherent explanation for what’s wrong. He only got a shrug along with sympathetic eyes.  


“I don’t really know what happened,” he tried to explain, “One second, he was fine, and the next he was crying. I thought he would talk to you”.  
Liam nodded his head and held his son a little tighter as he grabbed his things off the floor and stood up. He closed his eyes for a second as he felt the hot tears seep through his shirt onto his shoulder.  


“I’m sorry Niall,” He sighed out, feeling terrible his son had some sort of breakdown in front of the young teacher, “I don’t know what’s wrong, but thank you for taking care of him”.  


“It’s literally my job to make sure he is alright,” Niall was frowning, but obviously trying to be upbeat about the situation. “Feel better Hazza” he smiled at the young boy who paid him no mind while he sniffled into his father’s shirt.  


Liam walked out of the classroom with a deep frown. This day was not going at all how he planned. However, his number one priority has, and always will, be his son. No man, or women, will ever come between that. He needed to figure out what is wrong with his boy, he just needs to do so in the comfort of his own home. Liam sighed as he opened the back door of his car and attempted to pry Harry off him. Tonight, was going to be a long night.  


\----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Later that night, Liam was cooking dinner as Harry was sitting at the dining table, not having spoken much since they arrived home a few hours ago. 

“Daddy,” Harry spoke around his sippy cup of apple juice, “is it bad for boys to have long hair?”  


Liam’s head snapped up from where he was previously looking at the stovetop, chicken grilling in a pan as well as an assortment of vegetables. He hadn’t been able to get his son to open up as to what was bothering him at school, but he didn’t like where this conversation was heading already.  


“No baby,” Liam spoke very slowly, choosing his words carefully “Did somebody say something about your hair?”  


Harry looked down at his feet that were kicking the legs of the chair, he pushed a long strand of hair from his face as he shrugged nonchalantly.  


“Bub, your hair is absolutely beautiful,” Liam walked over to his son and crouched down in front of him, trying to make eye contact with the boy who had tears building up in his big green eyes already. “Did somebody say something at school today?” he repeated his question from earlier.  


Harry nodded slowly, and a few tears fell from his eyes as he pushed a few strands of his curly locks from his face, “Zach said I was too girly to play with him and Lou-Lou today”.  


Liam was seething, he was bullied pretty badly in school. To the point where he took up self-defense and weight lifting in order to protect himself from being jumped. He will not tolerate any sort of bullying with any person, especially his own son.  


“Baby, next time somebody says something mean like that,” Liam was trying hard not to let his anger show, “You tell Mr. Niall right away, nobody should be picked on because they’re different baby.”  


Harry nodded slowly, and he wrapped his arms around his father’s neck for a few seconds before pulling back and innocently asking, “Daddy, is something burning?”  


Liam whipped his head around to see smoke coming from the stove. Liam swore and jumped up from the floor to turn off the stove and move the pan to the sink, pouring water all over the food and effectively destroying their dinner for the night.  


“Well baby,” he turned around and put his hands on his hips, trying not to laugh at the way Harry was trying to hide his giggles behind his hands, “How does pizza for dinner tonight sound?”  


\----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Across town, Niall and Zayn were getting in for their weekly Nando’s lads night, Zayn was rolling his eyes at something his father was saying about a football team he could care less for.  


“Dad,” Zayn sighed as he took his coat and shoes off, “Please stop, you know how much I despise talking about the Manchester United players and their pre-season stats.”  


Niall laughed loudly as he hung both of their coats on the rack placed by the front door, “Okay then, what would you rather talk about then?”  


Zayn smirked as the two made their way into the small living room and sat on the couch, facing slightly towards one another.  


“How about you explain to me why it’s been two weeks since you’ve last seen Liam?”  


“Zayn,” Niall sighed and pinched his nose, his son has been pushing this topic nonstop the last few days, “It’s been a hectic last few weeks.”  


“I’m calling bullshit”  


“Language Zayn,” Niall warned “You’re only thirteen, you don’t need to be swearin’ just yet”  


“Sorry,” Zayn repressed the urge to roll his eyes, “You should still call him though, you guys would make a cute couple”.  


Niall sighed, but didn’t answer. He knows Zayn cares a lot for him, but sometimes he wished Zayn would focus more on himself, and less on the happiness of his father. Niall felt like Zayn was trying to make up for something, but he couldn’t figure out what.  


Zayn opened his mouth to continue, but was cut off by Niall’s text tone. The blonde man furrowed his brows as he picked up the phone to see it was just the man he was talking about earlier, Liam. 

20:27 From Liam: Hey, Harry is doing a lot better now, some punk in the class called his hair weird. Is it okay to want to beat up a 5 yr old????  


Niall laughed, but was beyond relieved to know that Harry was feeling better. He could feel Zayn’s curious eyes looking at him, but typed out a response quickly, not wanting Liam to believe he was being left on ‘read’.  


20:28 To Liam: Hey! It’s nice to hear from u, I feel like it’s been a while. And thanks for letting me kno, I’ll be sure to keep a better eye out for any punks. Pls dnt beat up any kids, idk how I would feel abt visiting u in jail.  


20:28 From Liam: Haha, I thought u wld want to kno he was okay. Also, I wont go to jail dnt worry, I couldn’t take u out on a first date from a cell, could i?  


Niall was beaming from behind his screen, he almost forgot anyone else was in the room until he heard cooing coming from his left. He turned slightly to look at his son making kissy faces while singing “Liam and Niall sitting in a tree, K-I-S-S-I-N-G”.  


Niall laughed loudly and almost thought about scolding his son for reading his messages over his shoulder, but instead he just smiled even harder and typed out his response to Liam.  


20:31 To Liam: yea, I want to be wined and dined Payne. That’s gonna be kinda hard to do from behind bars (:  


Niall tossed his phone to the side and he turned mother towards his son who was smirking. Instead of commenting, Niall reached across the dining room table and picked up two controllers. He threw one to his son before turning on the console.  


“Loser has to wash the dishes” the thirty-year-old father said as the game loaded on the screen.  


“You’re on.”

**Author's Note:**

> follow thoseperfectcurls on tumblr and message me if you want a second chapter?


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